Program to cover Civil War field embalming

Illinois Road Scholar Jon Austin will present “Civil War Field Embalming: A Demonstration of Period Technique” Saturday, Feb. 23 at 3 p.m.at the Geneseo Public Library.

The program will provide a unique opportunity to learn more about the Civil War, and the harsh reality of 19th century medical practices, after battle in particular.

Austin, a Road Scholar selected by the Illinois Humanities Council, will portray Dr. Benjamin F. Lyford following the Battle of Gettysburg and present the information as he re-enacts a 19th century medical school lecture.

Topics will include verification of death, period medicine and chemistry, along with how soldiers were prepared for shipping and burial after losing their lives in battle. Nineteenth century mourning rituals and Lincoln’s funeral will also be discussed.

Austin is the creator and first executive director of the former Museum of Funeral Customs in Springfield, Ill. The museum closed in 2008 but Austin continues to share his expertise on the subject in an effort to provide information that is rarely available. He offers this point of entre in the hopes that audience members will then engage in a dialogue with their families regarding funeral and end-of-life issues.

The Illinois Humanities Council is supported, in part, by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Illinois General Assembly (through the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency), as well as by contributions from individuals, foundations and corporations.